Workforce Rights/Governance
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The House will pass the VA Accountability First and Whistleblower Protection Act, clearing the way for the President to sign the bill later this week. Some lawmakers and veterans service organizations see the bill's passage as a major win after years of debate over new accountability legislation. But federal employee groups say the bill would do more harm than good.
June 13, 2017 -
An Office of Special Counsel investigation recently found that Dan Scavino, Jr., the White House director of social media, violated the Hatch Act when he tweeted about Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) ahead of the primary election.
June 09, 2017 -
Employers and labor are opposing President Trump's plan to combine the Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
June 09, 2017 -
While much of the recent attention has fallen on the president’s proposed budget, Congress has still been introducing and passing legislation. Here are a few bills worth knowing about that might have slipped through the cracks.
June 02, 2017 -
The Navy is testing a new evaluation system that it says will be more objective, deliver greater fidelity in measuring sailors' performance. The end goal is to use the scores to help inform servicemembers' compensation packages.
June 01, 2017 -
The Merit Systems Protection Board is moving forward with a whistleblower case from James Wilson, the chief human capital officer for the Office of Special Counsel, who filed a whistleblower retaliation complaint against OSC. The agency plays a key role in investigating cases of whistleblower reprisal and protecting federal employees from prohibited personnel actions.
May 30, 2017 -
The Senate is tied up with the 2018 budget and probing whether Russia influenced the 2016 election. But members still remain interested in the Veterans Affairs Department. The committee is marking up the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act. If enacted, this bill could help the department attract the talent management says it needs. Kristine Simmons, vice president of government affairs at the Partnership for Public Service, joins Federal Drive with Tom Temin with more.
May 24, 2017 -
Both the Veterans Affairs and Justice departments believe they can easily resolve some concerns with the constitutionality of the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection. DoJ is concerned, however, that VA will run into the same issues that ultimately rendered a controversial provision on firing senior executives unconstitutional.
May 18, 2017 -
The Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, which senators introduced last week, may have more momentum than previous bills. It now has 12 co-sponsors, including four Democrats and VA Secretary David Shulkin himself. Yet some federal employee groups and experts question whether the new bill has the teeth to truly tackle long entrenched cultural problems at the department.
May 16, 2017 -
Open government and press organizations are fighting back against the new communications policy the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee recently set between his committee and the Treasury Department. The new policy says any communication between the committee and the department will be considered a "congressional record" and therefore isn't subject to the Freedom of Information Act.
May 15, 2017 -
Members of the Senate have reached a long awaited agreement on new accountability procedures for senior executives and employees within the Veterans Affairs Department. A bipartisan group of senators introduced the Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act Thursday morning. It would change current disciplinary appeals rights for both SES and rank-and-file employees.
May 11, 2017 -
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld an appeal from Sharon Helman, the former director of the beleaguered Veterans Affairs medical center in Phoenix, Arizona, who was fired in 2014. The court said a key provision that lets VA more quickly fire and discipline senior executives is unconstitutional. The Merit Systems Protection Board will review the original decision an administrative judge made regarding Helman's removal.
May 09, 2017 -
New Defense guidance says the blanket hiring freeze is now over. But it includes several caveats in line with the goal of reorganizing and reducing the size of the federal workforce.
May 03, 2017 -
The executive order establishes the Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protections as a new entity within VA. The new office will identify barriers and duplicative processes and resources to quickly disciplining and firing VA employees for poor performance or misconduct.
April 27, 2017 Sexual harassment at work is page one stuff of late. It's everywhere, says Senior Correspondent Mike Causey, even in federal offices.
April 24, 2017